Automatic musical instrument.



H. B. TREMAINE. AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED lULY 8.1916.

1 ,300 ,5 1 9 Patented Apr. 15, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET IN VENTOR aged/fa; ATTORNEY H. B. TREMAINE.

AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 8.19l6.

1,300,519. Patented Apr. 1 19,

HEET

2S S-SH T IN VEN TOR /MMM UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HE RY BARNES TREMAINE, or WESTFIELD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE AEoLIANCOMPANY, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 8, 1916. Serial No. 108,178.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY Banxics TRE- MAINE, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at \Vestfield. in the county of Union and State of NewJersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in AutomaticMusical Instruments, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates to improvements in automatic musicalinstruments, the features and advantages of which will be apparent tothose skilled in the art from an understanding of the followingdescription in connection with the drawings.

In these drawings which show only one of the particular forms in whichmy improvements may be embodied. Figure 1 is a front elevation of thetracker-box of an automatic player-piano within my invention and showingan ordinary or regular music-roll in playing position therein; Fig. 2 isa plan view of the device of Fig. 1: Fig. 3 is an enlarged horizontalsection partly in plan on the line 33 in Fig. 1 looking in the directionof the arrows; and Fig. 4 is a front perspective view of my improvedsong-roll.

Describing now the specific devices of the drawings1 is the tracker-boxof a playerpiano, 2 an upright tracker-bar, with its treble ducts in theupper half thereof and its bass ducts in the lower half. and 3 thetakeup spool on the left side of the tracker operatively mounted in theordinary way. 4 is an ordinary or regular music-roll shown in Figs. 1, 2and 3 operatively supported on the right side of the tracker between anydesired or well-known bearing parts 5 and 6. The roll is of coursereadily removable from the parts 5 and 6 and replaceable by another rollin the usual manner. The upper part 6 is shown as the clutch or drivingpart to effect the re-roll of the music-sheet and for this purpose itsupper end projects above its bearing, in the top of the tracker-box andcarries a spiral gear 7 (Fig. 2) which meshes with another spiral gear 8on the reroll shaft 9 adapted on occasion to be clutched-in so as to besuitably driven from the motor of the instrument, unnecessary toillustrate. Similarly 10 is another shaft adapted on occasion to besuitably driven from the motor to drive the take-up spool 3 through thegears 11 and 12 (Fig; 2) to unwind and play the music-roll.

The devices shown will play both the ordinary roll with the sheettraveling from right to left with its treble note. perforationsuppermost; and will also play a special or song-roll with its trebleuppermost and the words of the song with or without the musical score.(see Fig. 4-.) traveling also from right to left and therefore unfoldingto the eye. in natural, readable sequence.

The fact that the treble note-perforations are uppermost with the basenote-perforations below them makes it. easier to read and interpret theroll as it passes across the tracker. In the song-roll of Fig. 4. thewords and the musical score are printed on the inside face of the sheettoward the spool when the sheet is rolled up. so that when the sheet isin play. the words and score are visible from the front.

Finally I provide lighting means arranged so as to illuminate then1usie-sheet from the back and thereby render visible to the player atthe front of the instrument any expression marks and lines printed onthe back of the sheet. which is where they will be when the ordinarymusic-roll is played as shown in Figs. 1. 2 and 3. For example 14 is thetempo expression-line shown dotted because it is on the back of thesheet. which nevertheless shows through when the sheet is illuminated asaforesaid and can therefore be followed by the vertically adjustablepointer 15 of the tempo-control means of the instrument.

The lighting means shown comprises an incandescent lamp 16. a shield 17preventing the lamp from being seen through the music sheet, and areflector 18 which receives the light from the lamp and returns itthrough the sheet. This produces a soft. indirect illumination which Ifind to be desirable.

That I claim is:

1. In an automatic musical instrument, an

- upright tracker-bar having the treble ducts Patented Apr. 15, 1919.

in its upper half and the bass ducts in its lower half, an uprighttake-up spool located at the left of the tracker, and means located atthe right of the tracker for operatively supporting an upright musicroll in position for the music-sheet to travel across the tracker fromright to left to the take-up spool, so that its treble perforations willbe at the top thereof and its bass perforations at the bottom, while theplaying indicating marks will be on the back of the sheet: incombination with lighting means arranged to illuminate the sheet fromthe back, so as to show said indicating marks through said sheet to theplayer.

2. In an automatic musical instrument, an upright tracker-bar having thetreble ducts in its upper half and the bass ducts. in its lower half, anupright take-up spool located at one side of the tracker, and meanslocated at the other side of the tracker for operatively supporting anupright, music roll in position for the music-sheet to travel across thetracker to the take-up spool with its treble notes uppermost, while theplaying indicating marks will be on the back of the sheet; incombination with lighting means arranged to illuminate the sheet fromthe back, so as to show said indicating marks through said sheet to theplayer.

light through said sheet to the player.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this7th day of July 1916.

HENRY BARNES TREMAINE.

